4/5 Krishna R. 4 years ago on Google
From
the
time
of
its
foundation
in
1386,
Heidelberg
University
had
an
autonomous
jurisdiction
and
the
legal
right
to
detain
students.
They
set
up
the
student
prison
(Karzer)
to
imprison
students
here
for
“Kavaliersdelikte”
(minor
transgressions).
The
most
common
offences
were
loud
singing,
drunken
behaviour,
participating
in
illegal
fencing
duels
and
driving
pigs
through
town.
They
could
also
end
up
if
they
insulted
the
local
constable
(Amtmann).
Soon
this
became
a
rite
of
passage
and
a
matter
of
honour
for
students.
They
were
sentenced
from
2
days
to
4
weeks
in
prison.
They
spent
time
decorating
the
walls,
playing
cards
with
friends
and
carving
names
on
tables.
The
subjects
on
the
walls
were
silhouette
profiles,
coat
of
arms
of
the
student
association,
date
of
confinement
and
humourous
comments.
For
the
black
paint,
they
earlier
used
candle-smuts
or
soot
from
the
fireplace
and
later
they
bought
paints
in
with
them.
They
also
got
their
photographs
in
student
association
uniform
and
inserted
into
the
doors.
The
names
of
the
rooms
given
were
Solitude,
Palais
Royale
and
Sanssouci
with
the
King’s
Throne
being
the
fancy
name
for
the
loo.
An
interesting
place
to
visit
for
20-30
minutes
offering
an
insight
into
student
life
&
their
graffiti,
more
than
a
century
ago.
This
is
2
flights
on
top
of
a
building
with
only
stairs
to
reach
the
top.
It
is
a
short
walk
from
the
main
church
and
costs
~€3.
Timings
are
around
10
A.M.
to
4/6
PM.
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